My Experience in St Louis Cathedral - Essay Example

Time: 5 pm Location: New Orleans, Louisiana Organizations: Louis Cathedral Tradition: Christianity Religion and Theology - Experience Paper Order No. 829436 The prospect of an experience paper was quite intriguing and I was quite curious about it. The venue that I chose for this experience was the magnificent St. Louis Cathedral. The fact that I had never been there made it all the more interesting and to experience the whole impact, I decided to go by myself. As I entered its gates, a feeling of peace and serenity surrounded me. The St. Louis Cathedral was resplendent in white with pastel shades and trimmed in gold. This Basilica had been here since 1718.and what makes it more interesting is the fact that Pope John Paul II had visited this Cathedral in September 1987. The next thing that I seemed to register was the beauty of this immense structure. It is known to be one of the famous landmarks in New Orleans and had steeples that majestically looked over the green of the church compound. The sculpture of General Andrew Jackson was situated just outside the entrance of the church. The floor was marked with black and white tiles of marble and was flanked on either side by the pews that held the Bible, for all those who wanted to use them. The entrance of the Basilica had the sculpture of an angel holding a bowl of ‘Holy Water’, on either side. I saw some people dip their fingers in it and made a sign of the cross on their forehead with the water. Very soon, the pews were filled with people who maintained a peaceful silence before the proceedings could begin. The participants were mostly between the age group of 40 – 80 yrs. There were also some younger people who came to attend the service. Most of the people were dressed in formals but there was a minority who wore casuals too. In the center facing the audience, was a huge altar that was aesthetically decorated with flowers and candles on silver candle-sticks were placed on a beautiful laced altar cloth. Surrounded by scented white flowers was a huge Bible that was edged in gold. Chandeliers were lined over the pews and there were many sculptures of Apostles in addition to an idol of Jesus on the Cross. The ‘celebrant’ for the day was Father William Mastry, who began the solemn mass with the words - ‘The Lord said, “At the end of the world behold I come to do your will O’ God. Hallelujah. He requested the Almighty for forgiveness for all the sins that we have committed. A reading was done from the book of Prophet Isaiah. The next reading was from the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke. The intercession was followed by a very interesting sermon by the priest about living in a world of celebrities. He explained that A celebrity is someone who is ‘famous for being known’ for things that may be good or bad. A good majority of people spend a lot of money and resources, just so they can be visible in the public eye or in the limelight. There is a constant fear in people for being ‘old news’. He states that for those who fear obscurity should take a look at Mother Mary, who was unknown and from a small place but yet, was chosen by God to bring Jesus into the world. He stated that Mary was strong enough to be obedient. Obedience means to listen, to hear… Many marriages and friendships fall apart and die because people these days are not humble enough to listen to the other person. He said to give God a human face, in whatever we do and wherever we are, be it a hospital, prison or at home. Following the sermon, the mass proceeded into the offering of ‘Bread and Wine. The bread is believed to be the body of Christ, while the wine is the blood of Christ. The priest blessed these gifts with prayer and the congregation participated by answering the prayer. After blessing, communion took place with people coming to the center in lines and receiving the bread given by the priest on their tongue. They returned with their heads bowed and continued their personal prayer of thanking God for his blessings. The things that had been used for the service were cleaned and wiped and placed back from where they had been taken. The closing of the mass was also performed in a solemn manner with the priest chanting prayers and blessing the entire congregation while sprinkling Holy water from a sprinkler. The choir who supported the mass with beautiful hymns throughout, and answered the prayers with song, once again, burst out in praise of the Lord, with a praising song which was so uplifting. The congregation joined in the singing making it so lively and memorable. The sermon by the celebrant was inspiring as it was motivational to me. The peace and serenity I gained made me stop and think about the hectic and fast life we lead today. I understood that though the atmosphere was quiet and somber it was a celebration of accepting the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ through the celebration of mass. Looking at the gathering who attended the service, I understood that though there were people from all walks of life, it seemed that there was a sense of equality amidst all their differences. Everyone there felt that in the eyes of God, all men are one and the same. After the celebration I took a walk around St. Louis’ Basilica and found that it was so tastefully and aesthetically constructed. There were stain-glass paintings all around the church portraying various parts of the Bible and an immaculate fresco on the ceiling that showed Jesus blessing some people while being watched by angels from above. The upper sides of the church were lined with flags from many countries in the world depicting the unanimity of different religions. Most of the individuals seemed to be there because they were troubled and needed divine intervention. For some it was a sort of ritual to be there, and for others it was a place to ask forgiveness and repentance for all the sins they had committed. The service seemed to give everyone a sense of calm and made them feel that through all their diversities and shortcomings, there was always God they can come to. The readings from the Bible served as a way for people to remember His words and how Jesus had suffered to save everyone. My experience with the religion Christianity is very profound. The sermon directed me towards thinking about my priorities in life and what truly mattered. The peace I gained from the experience brought in a sort of calm to my life and helped me to have a better perspective on what was really important in life. I would say that experiencing Christianity as a religion through this ceremony, was a life changing experience for me and I am very happy to have been given this opportunity to experience it. Reference St. Louis Basilica www.thedailymass.com/cathedral.php Read More